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I had hoped to have this complete before cross season but I will be racing this weekend........I must have meant before the start of the NC series, yes I am sure that is what I meant. The start of the NC series is the official start of cross season.

 

 

 

Appropriate Sign

Based on my previous agricultural endeavors I thought it appropriate for me to pose underneath this sign!
A farmer with a sense of humor.

 

LIFE IS GRAND !!!!!!!

The first cross race of the season…well it is called a training race, although I am not sure what the difference is, it hurts just as bad regardless of what you call it. I do not know where to begin this race report. It felt great to be back on the cross bike going so hard my eyes were crossed, snot running down my face(I am always amazed at how much snot I can produce), drool dripping off my chin, legs burning with pain. Reminds me of a song by John Cougar:

Make it hurt so good…
“Hurt so good Come on baby, make it hurt so good
Sometimes love don't feel like it should
You make it hurt so good”

“Don't have to be so exciting
Just tryin' to give myself a little bit of fun yeah
You always look so invitin', you ain't as green as you are young
Hey baby, it's you, come on, girl, now, it's you
Sink your teeth right through my bones, baby, let's see what we can do
Come on and make it hurt so good”

I have never seen Mr. Cougar at a cross race but I am sure he must have raced at some point … what else would have inspired such lyrics?

The bike worked great the Grifo’s hooked up excellent and the weather was awesome! A few showers off and on made for ideal conditions for testing tires, bikes, brakes etc. Ned from bio-wheels did an excellent job of setting up the course. The course had 2 sets of 2ea barriers, a fast section through the woods with a slight right hander at the bottom(no brakes if you trusted your tires), numerous declining radius turns mixed in with an off camber, a flat section and a steep hill.

The best part of all was the camaraderie among the racers. I got to see my good friend Dwayne and a couple of his buddies from; can you believe it..Tennessee! These guys love cross which is what makes this sport so great! There were ~30 racers total. I was stoked at the turnout, this is great! A couple of racers were MIA but overall a good turnout!

I am still delirious with excitement…problem is I am stuck at work with no one to talk cross with :(!!!

Rails to Trails

Diana and I spent this past week riding the New River Trail. This is one of the "Rail to Trails" routes in Virginia. The trail runs from Galax to Pulaski and is ~ 51 miles long with and additional spur that goes to Fries which adds another 5 miles. The trail meanders through farm land and approximately 90% of it is along the New River which is supposedly the oldest river in the world.

The ride was great! We covered the entire trail twice in three days. At times it was kind of boring but there was no opportunity to coast which made for a great work out and tired legs at the end of the day. We chose to take the cross bikes which proved to be a good choice. The mtn bikes would have been to slow and the road bikes with 23c tires would have sank into the gravel.

We had a great week and a great time!

The weekend came and we each decided to ride with our friends. Diana did a breakfast ride to the Pisgah Inn with some friends and Cara came over to do a short ride with me.Our loop included a few hills and lasted ~ 2.5 hours. Up the last climb I went out ahead so we could both climb at our own pace, once over the hill Cara told me she was about to bonk! I didn't think the youngster was gonna make it! We made it to the store where we both had a soda and then on to the house.

Sunday I was up and off to the lake lure olmpiad TT up to the base of chimney rock, I finished 2nd but Cara passed me on the way up. I took a pretty good ribbing at the top from my good friend Ned and Cara. After the hill climb it was home where Diana and I took off and did 45 mile tandem ride.

a great week spent with bikes,family and friends!!!!!!!!!!